Designed by the respected brutalist architects Alison and Peter Smithson it was championed as reinventing social housing and bringing the now discredited "streets in the air" idea to Britain.

But announcing today's decision, culture minister Margaret Hodge said: "I do not think that their [the Smithson's] reputation outweighs the evidence that Robin Hood Gardens was not innovative in terms of the 'streets-in-the-air' concept and it is not fit for purpose."

She added: "When functional failures are fundamental, it raises questions about the architectural performance of the building and thus its claims to special interest."

Hodge's statement reads as if she wanted to add another f-word, to describe the estate.

The fate of the 1960s block has prompted fierce debate on the opinion and letters pages of the Guardian.